During the 2012 San Diego Comic-Con International, Hot Toys threw their hat in the Exclusives ring with the 1/6th scale Rescue Version of Captain America from the "Captain America: The First Avenger" film! He was only available through Sideshow Collectibles, and after the show, Sideshow sent us one over to check out for ourselves! Join us as we take a closer look at this con-exclusive hero and see if he's worthy of his reputation.

Cap comes packaged in a sturdy box with his image painted in sepia tone across the front and back. On the upper right hand side the Sideshow Exclusive sticker sits proudly, all shiny and gold. The right side of the package has a grommet placed in the middle that, when pulled, reveals the window box for the figure. It's a nice overall presentation, but it doesn't really matter to us since we're opening the figure.

Okay, so while there weren't any women fighting to get at this figure while we were photographing it, we're still amazed at the likeness to Chris Evans. The only newly sculpted parts on this figure are the head and hands and both are spot-on. Crazy-accurate head sculpts have become Hot Toys trademark and that continues here with Cap. Of course, with Hot Toys, the sculpt is only part of the process, as their paintwork really helps to add life to their figures. Here, everything is nice and tidy with no slop, proper shading, and even a gloss on the eyes to make them look moist. His hair seems darker than what it should be, but this was also seen on the other Steve Rogers sculpt as well. (On another viewing of "The First Avenger", it does match closer than we originally thought) Our only complaint on the sculpt lies on the right side of his head, from the top of his crown to the hairline just above his ear: a mold line! It's not a huge one like we've seen on regular retail figures, but the fact that part of a mold line has managed to exist on this high-end collectible is a bummer. Thankfully, it's relegated solely to his hair, so it blends better than normal.

The costume for Captain America comes straight out of the film during the time he faces down Hydra in order to free P.O.W.s who have been imprisoned at one of their installations. Therefore, while sporting some very WWII-style gear, he's also wearing his make-shift U.S.O. Captain America uniform beneath, and you can see the white star emblazoned on his chest beneath the leather jacket. Speaking of the leather jacket, it doesn't come off. Nope. Not at all. The zipper can be opened and closed, but the whole shebang is sewed at the bottom to keep it from separating, and even the included instruction sheet warns against removing it. What can be seen of the suit underneath is a spandex material with the raised white star. The star appears to be affixed to the figure's chest which also keeps it properly positioned no matter how he's posed. Another nice detail is the lacing running up each leg through the grommets on the gaiters. It's just a little touch that adds a lot of accuracy to the costuming.

Articulation is listed by Hot Toys at being 30+ points. This seems about right, but without being able to remove the jacket, it's tough for us to list them all properly. Still, he moves a ton and is easily as poseable as our previously reviewed SDCC-exclusive Lt. Falcon. Well, he probably would be as poseable if not for the jacket. The leather jacket is made of an amazingly thin, yet realistic material, but still hinders his arm articulation a lot more than we would have liked-- mostly in the shoulder area. what this amounts to is that having Steve Rogers aim his pistol out at arms length isn't going to be happening any time soon. We know these high-end figures are meant to be displayed, and the look of the figure should be better than the function, but fundamentally we're action figure guys and not getting full poseability is a bit of a drag. Otherwise, the figure moves great and his legs are completely free despite the gaitors. We figured they would be hindering as well, but no such problems with them.

Accessories for Captain America are both plentiful and accurate to the film. The come packaged in a tray behind the figure itself and include everything you need to outfit Steve for a rescue mission. The .45 pistol fits in the included holster and, like the bayonet and sheath gets tied around his leg to keep it from flopping around like an idiot. The ammo belt and suspenders go on easily and, on ours, were already sized properly so no adjustments necessary. The helmet is a highlight and is constructed from actual metal. Like a real one, it has a liner that includes all the necessary straps and adjustments to fit Rogers' noggin and also is a good resting place for the included goggles. The shield is made of plastic, but the straps are made of a thicker version of the leather use don the coat, giving the whole thing a very nice look and feel. The triangular shield has been decoed with the flag motif and "scratches" and "dirt" have been added to show battle wear. A Thompson Machine Gun rounds out the weaponry, while extra hands and a figure stand finish off the accessories list.

All in all, this Captain America figure is a very nice display piece. The jacket, both hindering shoulder movement and being non-removable keeps him from hitting the bullseye with us, but if you already have one of Hot Toys other Captain America figures, then you'll want to add this one as well. One thing is for sure: he's the perfect type of con-exclusive. Cap is a figure fans love, but is a version that isn't integral to a collection. For more on this figure, and everything else Hot Toys has coming down the pipeline that you'd like to own, be sure to check out Sideshow Collectibles official website, as they're the North American distributor of Hot Toys' brand 1/6th scale awesomeness!

we're going to wrap things up with a few more photos of the rescue Version Captain America: